A large-scale analysis of sleep duration and signs of aging in 500,000 adults identified an optimal sleep duration: sleeping 6 to 8 hours per day is associated with a lower risk of early death and disease. Sleeping more or less than this duration accelerates aging. This study does not mean that 6 to 8 hours suits everyone, nor does it prove that meeting this "golden sleep" requirement each day can directly improve health or slow aging. However, it does provide the most comprehensive overview to date of the relationship between sleep and human aging. The findings support a promising hypothesis: adjusting sleep duration may be a viable pathway to reduce the risk of age-related diseases. The research team analyzed the relationship between sleep duration and 23 biological aging clocks, which cover aging characteristics of 17 human organs. These clocks were constructed based on protein levels, metabolite concentrations, and medical imaging features. The results revealed a U-shaped aging pattern in most organs, but the lowest point of the curve (optimal sleep duration) was not always in the same position. For example, the aging clock based on heart proteins showed that 6 hours of sleep corresponded to the best health state, while the brain protein clock showed that 8 hours of sleep yielded the optimal effect. In addition, in some cases, there were differences in optimal sleep duration between men and women. Overall, compared with people who slept too long or too little, those who maintained 6 to 8 hours of sleep per day aged more slowly, had better health, and had lower rates of type 2 diabetes, depression, and other diseases.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10524-5
https://news.sciencenet.cn/sbhtmlnews/2026/5/389647.shtm?id=389647